Containers for storing fishing tackle are often referred to as “tackle boxes.” These containers usually contain a closable outer case that opens to reveal an interior chamber for storing fishing tackle, such as fishing lures and the like, therein. An exemplar tackle box can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 3,985,409 to Kneier, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. It features a hard-shelled case with a pivoting lid that opens to reveal the interior chamber. Inside the camber is a plurality of individual compartments sized to receive an individual fishing lure therein.
Despite the benefits of this type of tackle box, it has several drawbacks. For example, lures stored in the individual chambers tend to move around as the tackle box is moved. This movement allows the lures to become tangled with other items in the compartment. Also, many lures have sharp hooks attached to them, and these hooks remain exposed while the lure is in the compartment. Accordingly, a person seeking to remove a lure from the compartment may inadvertently injure themselves on the lure's hook while attempting to retrieve it.
Efforts have been made to safety store hooked lures to prevent injuries when attempting to retrieve them from a tackle box. These tackle boxes basically secure the hooks of the lure to the tackle box, rather than simply storing the entire lure in a compartment in the box.
In general, these types of tackle boxes secure the hook or hooks of the lure in one of two ways. One way is by hanging the lure in the box by the hook or hooks. U.S. Pat. No. 1,749,227 to Pruett, and U.S. Pat. No. 2,801,492 to Katwyk et al, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference, are examples of tackle boxes that hang a lure by its hooks for storage. The other way is to insert the hook of a lure into a slot formed in a resilient foam pad secured to a wall on the tackle box case. Published U.S. patent application publication number 2008/0289988, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference, is an example of this type of fishing lure hook securing structure.
Despite the improvements offered by these types of tackle boxes, they still have several drawbacks. For example, some fishing lures are elongate flexible structures that do not have any hooks on them. These types of lures are often called “tube flies.” They have an elongate tube with ornamental materials such as fringe and feathers attached thereto. During use, a fishing line is threaded through the tube of the tube fly and a hook is attached to the end of the line thereby “rigging” the lure for fishing.
Tube flies tend to become knotted and tangled when stored in a compartment in conventional tackle boxes. Moreover, because they do not usually have a hook attached to them, they cannot be stored by their hooks in tackle boxes designed to hold lures by their hooks.
Similarly, some lures containing hooks are formed of two articulated structures, each containing at least one hook. Known tackle boxes do not effectively hold these types of lures.